Enjoy extra moist chocolate covered strawberry cupcakes with a sweet strawberry buttercream surprise in the center. Finish these perfectly rich cupcakes with fudge-like chocolate ganache and you’ll win the way to anyone’s heart! 😉
I originally published this recipe in 2018 and have since added new photos, a video tutorial, and more helpful success tips.
One reader, Shannon, commented: “I can truly say: these are the best cupcakes I’ve ever had in my life. The chocolate flavor of the cake with the strawberry buttercream is divine… Another terrific recipe from Sally. The whole family loved it and these were such fun to make. ★★★★★“
If you adore chocolate covered strawberries—biting into rich dark chocolate with a juicy strawberry inside—this cupcake recipe is for you. We’re taking the most chocolatey chocolate cupcake and topping it with soft, fudge-like chocolate ganache. And hidden inside is the sweet surprise of fluffy strawberry buttercream. These are just like my top-rated chocolate cupcakes with vanilla frosting and cream-filled chocolate cupcakes, but with a strawberry twist. SO GOOD!
Make the buttercream filling with freeze-dried strawberries, the same way we make the frosting for my homemade strawberry cake. (And actually these festive Valentine’s Day cupcakes too!) This is the best way to get REAL strawberry flavor… no artificial flavor here!
Why You’ll Love These Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cupcakes
- Extra soft & moist chocolate cupcakes, not dense or dry at all
- Extreme chocolate flavor; hot liquid “blooms” the cocoa
- Sweet, fluffy strawberry cream in the center, made with freeze-dried strawberries
- Rich, fudge-like chocolate topping is just 2 ingredients: chocolate and cream
- No piping tips or special decorating skills needed for these natural beauties
And if you love these flavors for breakfast, be sure to try these chocolate covered strawberry muffins!
3 Parts to This Recipe
Even for a decorated cupcake, the process is still pretty straightforward: Make the cupcakes, make the ganache, make the filling. Carve a little hole in the center of the cooled cupcakes, fill with buttercream, and spread cooled ganache on top.
- Chocolate Cupcakes: My team and I love these homemade cupcakes because they’re exceptionally moist with loads of chocolate flavor. They’re basically the cupcake version of this ever-popular chocolate cake. I have another recipe for plain chocolate cupcakes on my website, but today’s version holds up better with a filling inside. (And tastes even more chocolatey!)
- Chocolate Ganache Topping: Just 2 ingredients here: chocolate and heavy cream/heavy whipping cream/double cream. The chocolate ganache takes a bit of time, but most of it is hands-off as you let the ganache cool. I instruct you to make it before the filling, to give it time to thicken up.
- Strawberry Buttercream Filling: Freeze-dried strawberries are the secret to the most delicious strawberry buttercream. You can typically find them in the dried fruit section of most grocery stores, or online. If you can’t find them, use the whipped cream from these strawberry shortcake cupcakes or even this raspberry cake filling instead.
Make the Chocolate Cupcakes First
You don’t even need a mixer for this step, just grab a sturdy whisk. You’ll simply whisk together the dry ingredients, whisk together the wet ingredients, then pour wet into dry and add the hot coffee (or water).
Spoon/pour the batter into a 12-count muffin pan lined with cupcake liners—you should have enough batter to make 15 cupcakes, so you will either need 2 muffin pans or you can bake them in 2 batches. Fill the liners about 2/3 full. If you use the batter to make fewer than 15 cupcakes, you are overfilling the lined cups and your cupcakes will spill over the sides. You want them to bake up nice and flat on top.
Optional step: When the cupcakes are completely—or nearly completely—cool, place them in the refrigerator for 20–30 minutes to make them a bit easier to carve into and fill.
And now… is there any topping more rich and indulgent-tasting than chocolate ganache?
Make the Chocolate Ganache
Even though it’s the topping, I recommend making the chocolate ganache before you make the filling and while the cupcakes cool. This is because the ganache also needs to cool and thicken. You need just 2 ingredients to make chocolate ganache:
- Pure Chocolate: Make sure you use real, quality chocolate. I typically use the 4-ounce baking bars found in the grocery store baking aisle, labeled semi-sweet or bittersweet (like Ghirardelli or Baker’s brands). You can use quality chocolate chips instead, but the ganache won’t be as smooth, as chocolate chips have stabilizers in them. You need 6 ounces, which is 1.5 bars (170g).
- Heavy Cream: This may be called by another name where you are, like heavy whipping cream or double cream. Just make sure it has a minimum of 36% fat content, otherwise it won’t set up as well. Usually we use 6 ounces of cream per 6 ounces of chocolate (1:1 ratio), but I recently reduced it down to 2/3 cup (just over 5 ounces) cream, so the ganache is a little thicker.
By the way, if you’re looking for grownup Valentine’s Day dessert recipes, feel free to kick things up a notch by using red wine chocolate ganache as the topping for these chocolate covered strawberry cupcakes instead; or try the chocolate raspberry ganache from this chocolate raspberry cake.
Heat the cream, pour over chopped chocolate in a heatproof bowl, let sit for a few minutes to soften the chocolate, and then slowly stir until the chocolate has all melted. The mixture won’t seem to combine at first (left photo below), but keep stirring.
Let it cool and thicken for about 30 minutes in the refrigerator:
Make the Strawberry Buttercream Filling
This is basically my strawberry buttercream frosting recipe, but scaled down to make the right amount to fill these chocolate covered strawberry cupcakes.
Start by grinding the freeze-dried strawberries into a powder, either in a food processor or blender:
Tip: Do not use “dried strawberries,” which have a chewy/gummy texture like raisins or dried apricots. They won’t grind into a powder. You need freeze-dried strawberries, which have all of the moisture removed.
You also need room-temperature butter, sifted confectioners’ sugar, heavy cream, and vanilla. Taste and add a pinch of salt if it’s too sweet. Now you’re ready to…
Fill & Assemble the Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cupcakes
We’ll use the same filling method as these cream-filled chocolate cupcakes, Easter cupcakes, and lemon raspberry jam cupcakes. With a sharp knife, cut a circle in the cupcake, and remove the center, which will be roughly the shape of a cone. Using a small spoon (or you could pipe it), fill the middle of the cupcake with as much strawberry buttercream as you can fit. (Usually between 1–2 teaspoons.) Slice/tear off the pointed tip of the cone-shaped piece of cupcake, and gently press the round piece back on top of the filling. If you need any extra help with this step, see my tutorial on How to Fill Cupcakes.
This can get a little messy because the cupcakes are oh-so-soft and moist. That’s fine, you’re covering up the mess with ganache. Spread it on top:
Optional Garnishes
For a finishing touch, I love to top these cupcakes with a strawberry heart. Watch this video for how to cut strawberries into hearts. I rounded off the top of the heart and cut each into thin slices to top the cupcakes. A simple but elegant garnish! You could also top the ganache with sprinkles before it sets, or add a chocolate-dipped strawberry.
And if you have any leftover strawberry buttercream, you can spoon it into a piping bag fitted with a small round piping tip (like Wilton #6) and pipe a heart or letter on top.
More Valentine’s Day Treats
Be sure to check out my list of Valentine’s Day Dessert Recipes, which includes favorites such as:
- Chocolate Lava Cakes
- Sparkle Sweetheart Cookies
- Chocolate Raspberry Cake
- Valentine’s Day Sugar Cookies
- Chocolate Truffles
Or view all of my dessert recipes for even more inspiration.
Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cupcakes
- Prep Time: 40 minutes
- Cook Time: 22 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours (includes cooling)
- Yield: 15 cupcakes
- Category: Cupcakes
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
These are deliciously indulgent and fudgy chocolate cupcakes filled with strawberry buttercream and topped with chocolate ganache.
Ingredients
Chocolate Cupcakes
- 1 cup (125g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1/2 cup (42g) unsweetened natural cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup (80ml) vegetable oil
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup (120ml) buttermilk*, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup (120ml) hot coffee or hot water
Chocolate Ganache Topping
- 6 ounces (170g) semi-sweet chocolate, finely chopped
- 2/3 cup (160ml or 5.3 ounces) heavy cream
Strawberry Buttercream Filling
- 1/2 cup (about 12–13g) freeze-dried strawberries*
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 2 cups (240g) confectioners’ sugar, sifted
- 2–3 Tablespoons (30–45ml) heavy cream
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- salt, to taste
- optional garnish: sliced fresh strawberries or sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Line a 12-cup muffin pan with cupcake liners. This recipe yields about 15 cupcakes, so line a second muffin pan with 3 cupcake liners or bake in batches.
- Make the cupcakes: Whisk the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl. Set aside. Whisk the oil, sugar, egg, vanilla, and buttermilk together until combined. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, add the hot coffee/water, and whisk until the batter is completely combined. Batter is thin.
- Pour/spoon the batter into the liners, filling only 2/3 full to avoid spilling over the sides. You should have enough batter for 15 cupcakes. Bake for 20–22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Allow cupcakes to cool in the pan for 10 minutes, and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Cupcakes must be completely cooled—and even chilled for 20–30 minutes in the refrigerator if they’re particularly sticky on top—before assembling.
- Make the chocolate ganache: Place finely chopped chocolate in a medium heatproof bowl. Heat the cream in a small saucepan over medium heat until it begins to gently simmer. (Do not let it come to a rapid boil—that’s too hot!) Pour over chocolate, then let it sit for 2–3 minutes to gently soften the chocolate. With a metal spoon or small silicone spatula, very slowly stir until chocolate has melted and mixture is smooth. Ganache is thin. The finer you chopped the chocolate, the quicker it will melt with the cream. If it’s not melting, do not microwave it. If needed, see Troubleshooting Chocolate Ganache. Once ganache mixture is smooth, transfer it to the refrigerator and let it chill for at least 30 minutes to thicken before spreading on cooled and filled cupcakes.
- Make the strawberry buttercream filling: As the ganache cools and thickens, make the filling. Using a blender or food processor, process the freeze-dried strawberries into a powdery crumb. You should have around 1/4 cup. Set aside. In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, beat the butter on medium-high speed until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add sifted confectioners’ sugar, strawberry powder, heavy cream, and vanilla. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then switch to high speed and beat for 2 minutes. Taste. Add a pinch of salt if frosting is too sweet. Set aside.
- Fill the cupcakes: Using a sharp knife, cut a circle into the center of the cooled cupcakes to create a little pocket about 1 inch deep. The piece you removed will be sort of cone-shaped. Spoon or pipe strawberry buttercream inside each carved-out cupcake—use however much frosting will fit. (I use either a teaspoon measuring spoon or Wilton piping tip #12 to fill cupcakes. Usually you can fit between 1–2 teaspoons of frosting in each.) Slice/tear off the pointy end of the “cone” piece of cupcake you removed, and gently press the round piece back on top of the filling. See my How to Fill Cupcakes post if you need extra visuals or help with this step.
- Top with ganache: With a knife or small icing spatula, spread the thickened chocolate ganache on top of each cupcake. Spread on a thick layer, so it sets as a thick fudge-like topping. Garnish with fresh strawberry slices or sprinkles, if desired.
- Serve immediately or store covered at room temperature or in the refrigerator for up to 1 day before serving. Cover and store leftover cupcakes in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. I recommend a cupcake carrier for storing and transporting decorated cupcakes.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: Bake the cupcakes 1 day in advance. Keep cupcakes covered tightly at room temperature and fill/frost the day of serving. Strawberry buttercream and chocolate ganache can be prepared the day before too. Cover each and refrigerate overnight. After refrigerating, the buttercream will be stiff. Beating in a splash of heavy cream or milk will help thin the frosting out again, if needed. The ganache will be nice and thick. If needed to thin out, spoon ganache into heatproof bowl and place over a pot of simmering water. Stir constantly until thinned out. Unfrosted, unfilled cupcakes can be frozen up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before assembling and serving.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 12-cup Muffin Pan | Cupcake Liners | Whisk | Glass Mixing Bowls | Cooling Rack | Food Processor | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Freeze Dried Strawberries | Sifter/Sieve | Piping Bag (Disposable or Reusable) | Wilton #12 Round Piping Tip | Small Icing Spatula | Cupcake Carrier
- Strawberry Buttercream: See the separate post on how to make the strawberry buttercream. You can read all the details about the frosting in that blog post. The freeze-dried strawberries are the secret; do not use fresh or frozen. Where to buy freeze-dried strawberries? I always find them in my regular grocery store in the dried fruit aisle. If you can’t find freeze-dried strawberries at the store, you can purchase them online or try strawberry whipped cream instead.
- Cupcakes Sinking: The cupcakes may look like they’re sinking in the center while they’re baking, but they should pop back up by the time baking is finished. It doesn’t matter all that much if they sink a bit in the center, though, because we’re cutting out the middles and filling them with cream.
- Buttermilk vs. Sour Cream: I tested these cupcakes both ways. Made with buttermilk, they have the best flavor, but can be a little soft and sticky, so slightly more difficult to cut and fill (I recommend a quick chill in the refrigerator before cutting and filling, to make them a bit easier to work with). Made with sour cream, they have a sturdier crumb, but the chocolate flavor isn’t as strong. You can also try using half of each, if you happen to have both!
- Buttermilk: Buttermilk is required for this recipe. You can make your own DIY buttermilk substitute if needed. Add 1 teaspoon of white vinegar or lemon juice to a liquid measuring cup. Then add enough whole milk to the same measuring cup until it reaches 1/2 cup. (In a pinch, lower fat or nondairy milks work for this soured milk, but the cupcakes won’t taste as moist or rich.) Stir it around and let sit for 5 minutes. The homemade “buttermilk” will be somewhat curdled and ready to use in the recipe.
- Hot Coffee or Hot Water: Hot liquid enhances the cocoa powder’s flavor. It also encourages it to bloom and dissolve appropriately. I promise these cupcakes don’t taste like coffee at all! If you don’t drink coffee, you can use hot water. For deeper and richer flavor, though, use coffee (regular or decaf, but make sure it’s black with no sugar or cream). You can either brew it in a coffee maker or make instant coffee.
- Chocolate for Ganache: Real, quality chocolate is ideal for ganache to set properly. I use the 4-ounce baking bars found in the grocery store baking aisle, such as Ghirardelli or Baker’s brands. You’ll need 1.5 of the 4-ounce bars to yield 6 ounces. If you can’t find those, you can use 170g (about 1 cup) of high-quality semi-sweet chocolate chips.
- Can I Make This Into a Cake? Absolutely. Use my chocolate cake recipe for 2 cake layers, spread the strawberry buttercream on one cooled cake, top with 2nd cake, and top entire cake with ganache.
- Top With Strawberry Heart Slices! Super simple. Watch this video for how to cut strawberries into hearts. I rounded off the top of the heart and cut each into thin slices to top the cupcakes.
- More Success Tips: Be sure to check out my 10 Tips for Baking the BEST Cupcakes.
Reader Comments and Reviews
Hi Sally!
I made these cupcakes for my son’s Special Olympics Powerlifting team & they were a HIT! As with ALL your recipes, these are GREAT! I was able to make 12 regular size cupcakes & 6 mini cupcakes,( 2 bites). I’ve NEVER made ganache as I thought it was too time consuming but it wasn’t & it’s the PERFECT topping for the filling. THANK YOU for making things so easy for us.
Great recipe. I went with the raspberry buttercream option. To save on time , swirled the raspberry buttercream on top of the chocolate ganache rather than core into the cupcake. Looked and tasted awesome. Even if I say so myself!
You said the batter could be a 6 inch cake – could I divide the batter in two for a double layer cake?
Thanks Sally for another winner.
Hi JJ, yours sounds delicious! The batter from the chocolate cupcakes we use here is the perfect amount for 3, 6 inch layers. If you only want two, you could make the two and then use the leftover batter for a few cupcakes. Follow our six inch cakes post for baking time and directions.
Hi Sally, I made these cupcakes and they turned out yum! But one thing happened, I was not able to cut the cupcakes easily so couldn’t fill with the frosting in the whole cupcake. Any easy way to cut the cupcakes from the centre?
Hi Ridha, make sure your knife is very sharp and feel free to use a spoon if needed to help remove some of the center. If you let your cupcakes cool a bit, that should also help make it easier to cut / less crumbly. Thanks so much for giving this recipe a try!
Maybe these for my sister’s birthday.. I also did pb cream filled, and white cream filled! Very good but super sweet! I’d do less cream inside and a light ganache on top next time. But mmmmmmmm!!!!
I am confused- the strawberry filling calls for 1/2 cup of freeze dried strawberries but in instruction states process in food process and set aside the 1/4 cup, is this a typo?
Hi Lori, 1/2 cup of freeze-dried strawberries should blend down into about 1/4 cup of powder. Use the powder in the frosting recipe. Sorry for any confusion!
this is an amazing cupcake recipe, i have loved every recipe i have tried from you page. only thing we did not totaly like was the frosting for filling the cupcake it was not good i tried a few of my tricks to help the flavor and ended up throwing it out and making a strawberry pie filling and using that to fill the cupcakes with. other then those freeze dried strawberries they were soooo yummy.
Hi Sally i have made and fulled these the night before, are they going to be ok? Will the filling taste bad or make the cake soggy?
Hi Glenda, that will work just fine — the cupcakes stay well in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days. Enjoy!
Hi Sally! I cannot wait to make these, I just added freeze dried strawberries to my grocery list. Is there any reason why you didn’t use your whipped ganache frosting?
Hi Lauren, whipped ganache would be wonderful on top of these cupcakes. Happy baking!
These cupcakes are absolutely perfect!! If you didn’t get good results.. it means you did something wrong!
I didn’t even need the ganache, I just put the frosting on the choc cupcakes and they were so good!! Thank you for this recipe
I have made these about 5 times and my family/husband love them! Thank you for sharing this recipe!
This was so so awesome to make with my mom and they were so so good!!! :3
I made these cupcakes and brought them to the staff lounge at school. They were well received by all. I used your strawberry cream cheese frosting with a touch of strawberry extract. What a great idea to put the frosting INSIDE the cupcake. And the ganache was an excellent choice for an icing. Delicious recipe!
These did not come out well for me. The strawberry frosting came out like paste. I know I didn’t make a mistake with that part. I wonder if the freeze-dried strawberries were in my cabinet too long or if my mini food processor mixed it too long.
The ganache was part my fault. I had two issues texture and taste. By accident, the cream came to a rapid boil at a low-sodium for a few seconds before I noticed. I wonder if that was the reason why the texture was so dense after chilling. It was also fuzzy like some cheap frosting. I couldn’t frost the cupcakes with an offset spatula after chilling for 3 hours. I used semisweet Baker’s chocolate so I have no idea what happened. The chocolate ganache had the flavor of Trader Joe’s truffles which I hated. It was too rich tasting and bitter too. Not sure what was wrong. It was disappointing.
Could these be made with raspberry filling instead of strawberry? My husband not so fond of chocolate and strawberry but LOVES anything chocolate and raspberry. Not sure if freeze dried raspberries are sold. Maybe that would be the issue.
Hi Mary! Yes, freeze-dried raspberries are available and actually quite common these days. My regular grocery store sells them. You can use those instead of freeze-dried strawberries.
I whipped these up really quick. They tasted amazing! I could have hand 5! Amazing job Sally!
These are amazing! They are beautiful and taste delicious. Perfect dessert for Valentine’s Day.
Also, if Trader Joe’s is not near your home and you don’t want to wait on Amazon, the best place to find freeze dried strawberries is at Walmart. I think they are only 3 or 4 dollars each for a 4oz bag!
These definitely did not disappoint! Sooo good. I’ll definitely be making them again, and I’ll try making a cake sometime.
Could I frost these if I made extra strawberry buttercream and then dip in the ganache before it’s cooled? I’m thinking frost the cupcake – stick in freezer to firm up the buttercream and then dip? Not sure if my buttercream would fall off or melt though lol
YUM! You can certainly try, Sadie. I definitely recommend freezing the frosting on the cupcakes first and then trying to dip one. If it doesn’t work you can always drizzle the ganache over the rest of them. You can also see how I make a chocolate shell covering on my Ultimate Birthday Cupcakess and my Peanut Butter Hi Hat Cupcakes.
Great recipe for gender reveal cupcakes! We did half strawberry filling and half blueberry filling.
Baking is all about precision, and I really enjoyed Sally’s tips that she included in the recipe. She’s definitely a pro who offers refined best practices.
Overall, the recipe itself was good. I did my best to follow her instructions explicitly. I found the taste of the chocolate cupcake to be a bit bitter, and a little dry at keeping the batter in the even for 20 mins (1 min under Sally’s recommendation.) If your oven runs hot like ours, I recommend checking the doneness at 18-19 mins to ensure that “moist” texture. Master bakers will say the key to perfect baked goods is to not open the oven until the timer goes off at max time, but for this recipe it’s necessary to check before completely done to achieve Sally’s perfect texture.
Another tip that wasn’t mentioned for the frosting: because the powered strawberry adds dryness to the mix, the texture will be on the dry side. To solve this, add 1 extra tablespoon of heavy cream, or a few to your desired thickness. Definitely agree with another poster that freeze dried strawberries are tart, so you’ll want to add some sweetness with either jam, or using less than the recommended ¹/4 cup with a little more confectioners sugar.
Looking forward to trying Sally’s other creations.
Excellent. A favorite by all!!
Hi Sally,
I want to make these for an event but I won’t have time except for about a week or so ahead. Have you ever tried making and freezing these? Did they thaw alright if so? Any thoughts on this? Would I be best off just freezing the cupcake and filling and then topping with ganache before the event?
Hi Ginger! The best way to make these cupcakes ahead of time is to bake and cool the cupcakes, then freeze them. Thaw them in the refrigerator or on the counter, then add the ganache close to serving.
Made these and 2 of your other cupcake recipes for co-workers and my husband’s game night buddies and they were devoured and much loved by everyone! I had a heck of a time tracking down freeze-dried strawberries for some reason and had to pick them out of a box of Special K Red Berries but hey it worked!
Can I make this as a cake? with the strawberry buttercream in the middle of the two layers and ganache on top? Any recommendations if the icing/ganache amounts will be different? I see a cake recipe with the cupcakes. Thanks!
Hi Julie! You can definitely turn these cupcakes into a chocolate cake. I recommend using this triple chocolate layer cake recipe. This amount of strawberry buttercream and ganache is plenty.
Sally, I need to bake a chocolate cake with strawberry filling for a birthday. Would you put ganache on the top and leave the sides naked, showing the strawberry filling between layers?
Yes, Anne that would be a beautiful cake!
I think these are the best cupcakes I’ve ever made! So delicious and pretty!! I’m excited to share these special treats at work tomorrow. Thank you, Sally!
Hi! Any particular reason you chose ganache instead of the chocolate buttercream frosting? Do you think it would be too rich? TIA!
Just for something a little different and because they’re filled with strawberry buttercream. Feel free to decorate with chocolate buttercream 🙂
Made these for Valentine’s Day and they were DIVINE! Making a second batch today. Thank you for sharing this glorious recipe.
Your thoughts on doing these as mini cupcakes? I’m going to try them tonight!
They’ll be great! About 11-12 mins bake time.
Hi Sally for the cupcakes
Could I use duckhed prossed coca powder instead of natural if I added baking powder and missed out the baking soda or the other way around
Would it work?
Hi Kat, I don’t suggest straying from this recipe. If you try them with dutched cocoa and only baking powder, let me know how they turn out.
Hi Sally,
These look amazing! Could I also change it up and use freeze-dried raspberries as chocolate and raspberry is my favorite combo! Thanks.
Absolutely! Any freeze-dried fruit works well in the buttercream.